About – At Home with Crystal

ALLOW ME TO REINTRODUCE MYSELF. I’M CRYSTAL.

So you want to know more, eh?

You can often find me blasting 90’s hip-hop through the house and reenacting my night club days, scrolling Reels for way too long, and forever planning the next meal while repeating “but didn’t I just feed you yesterday?”

KEEP READING

Let’s go back a bit, shall we?

I grew up until the age of 18 in tiny little towns in Nebraska. I was married and had my two perfect sons very, very young and moved to Florida where I found myself immersed in the world of property management. I started as a leasing agent and proudly worked my way up to the youngest property manager of our company. My then-husband and I decided it was time to move back to the Midwest to raise our boys, so off to Iowa we went in 2001. Life moved along, I grew up, I went through a divorce, and I met my current husband and had our beautiful daughters. (And side note: my ex-husband and I stayed on great terms and between all 4 parents, we did a hella-good job raising our boys.) In between all of that, I was a mortgage broker, and picked up my camera and started my small photography business.

I was so blessed to be able to stay at home with them while photographing amazing people (shout-out to all my Whitley Kay Seniors!). I often miss that phase of life. Once the girls were both in school, I decided it was time to get back to work and really contribute financially to our household… Enter my Realtor phase. What a ride! I met more amazing people and was cruising right along in the business, but I had an itch to escape the harsh winters of Iowa. Seasonal moods were something I felt getting worse and worse as I aged, so we decided to start looking at heading South. Boy, oh boy. A Texan! We moved to Dallas for 3 years, and I quickly realized it wasn’t for us. I did meet a few of my best friends, but overall it wasn’t somewhere I could settle. Now here I am, in Colorado, ready to plant some SOLID roots and bring you along on the journey.

44

actual age

27

real-feel age

50

metabolic age

100%

ready to fix that last one

Family is Everything

The following seven people are the absolute light of my lives…Let me introduce you!

My husband, Trevor!

I officially met Trevor on Super Bowl weekend, 2003. The funny story was that I had seen him months earlier and thought about him often. The beginning of our relationship wasn’t exactly smooth sailing, but we married in 2006, had our daughters in 2007 & 2009, and here we are 22 years later. He’s a dashingly handsome fella, loves playing basketball, is the most dedicated person to his career, is sometimes-funny, and is the best father to our girls. He supports all my crazy ideas, and has always encouraged me to do what makes me happy. As our time winds down with kids in the house, it will be a fun, new chapter to explore and find mutual hobbies and goals together.

01

02

Meet my son Taylor, and my daughter-in-law, Kinzie.

I am always in awe of these two. They met as Freshmen in college, started dating their Sophomore year, and have been inseparable ever since! They moved to Colorado right after they graduated, adopted the coolest dog ever (hi, Barley!), got married in 2022, and are both the most fun adventure seekers. Taylor has such a huge entrepreneurial spirit and always bouncing genius ideas around, and Kinz is currently working on her PhD in Dietetics. We feel so incredibly lucky to live close to them again and see their life unfold as adults. Fun fact about these two: They combined both of their last names to form a totally new last name. Literally no one else in the world with the same! Oh, and the meals they cook are to-die-for.

Meet my youngest son, Clayton, and my daughter-in-law, Hannah.

8th grade…that’s how long these two have been together. They belong like peanut butter and jelly, bacon and eggs, and Chip and Joanna Gaines. They attended separate colleges 8 hours away from each other but survived it and just got married in late 2024! Clayton is a PM who juggles many multi-million dollar projects with ease, and Hannah has matched and is starting her residency program this summer for Orthopedic Surgery. Two driven, dedicated humans who have been such a joy watching grow up together and forge a path in the world.

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04

A big hello to my daughter, Brielle.

She should still be wrapped up in her “blankey pink” at home in her toddler bed, but alas, she’s finishing up her high school years and looking forward to her future. Brielle says she is going to be the wealthy, cool aunt who spoils the nieces and nephews, travels the world, and just has fun in life. Her current plan is to support that idea with a law degree. She loves books, cats, and she could finish every single meal off with ice cream if you would let her. She is fairly pragmatic, and her resiliency is beyond admirable. Not many people can move as an 8th grader, and then agree that it’s best to move again as a Junior in HS and adjust so well. Smart, funny, and beautiful…the perfect combo. We are so lucky to watch her grow and thrive.

And finally, the baby of the fam, little Miss Ashlyn.

I always tease Ashlyn by reminding her that she was the baby who almost sent me to crazy-town. Never took a bottle or a pacifier, didn’t want to sleep, only wanted mama..There were some tough days, but what I would give to go back and have little babies again. Sigh. Ashlyn is a an animal and baby lover, can sing like a songbird, is super-strong, an amazing sprinter, and funny as heck. She’s empathetic and fiercely loyal, and expects the same from her closest people. Although there is plenty of time to change her mind, she’s considering something in the medical field, like orthodontics or pediatrician. I can’t wait to see how her high school career unfolds, and where her path takes her.